When a server starts running the start step of a process instance, the Process Engine for that server creates a timer object in memory and stores the timeout in the Process Engine database. If the Process Engine receives a status control document indicating process completion before the timer expires, the Process Engine cancels the timer.

If the timer expires, the process has timed out. The Process Engine produces a process transition document that identifies the next step to run. The Process Engine publishes the document, and the triggers on all servers retrieve the document and pass it to their own Process Engine.

The following table defines which step will run after the timer expires. The table shows which step takes precedence when more than one type of step is present.